For this essay you will focus on one historical or contemporary visual cultural production of your choice. For example, this could be (but is not limited to) a painting, an exhibition, or a piece of architecture; or it could be an aspect of a film, theatrical production or animation, such as its costume, set, props, film editing, etc.Analyse your chosen example using selected ideas from the lecture and seminar programme and from further research into theoretical ideas and historical contexts.

Submission Date:

Friday 30th November 2012

Semiotics within Prometheus

2

Contents

Introduction

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3

Essay Body

.……………………………………………………………………

4

Conclusion

...…………………………………………………………………..

12

Bibliography

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13List of Illustration

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14

Semiotics within Prometheus

3

Semiotics within Prometheus

Introduction

The study of semiotics focuses on the examination of signs, their indication andsignificance, as well as their communication. Within film, further understandings andanalysis are presented through the visual language that is communicated toaudiences through the principles of symbols and signs, having these visual images

“interpreted diff

erently in different cultures

”

(Monaco, 2009:171).

Prometheus

(Dir. R. Scott, 2012) is a science fiction film that marks the fifthinstallment to the Alien franchise, and serves as a prequel to the original 1979 film

Alien

(Dir. R. Scott, 1979)

.

The story of which

Prometheus

follows is set late in the21

st

century, and centres on the journey of the crew of the

Prometheus

, a giantspace craft which shares the same title as the production. As the crew pursuesdirections from a star map discovered amongst the remnants of ancient cultures thatinhabited Earth, they arrive on a distant world where they further discover anadvanced civilization that turns into a threat that could be the cause of the extinctionof the human race.Even though

Prometheus

(Dir. R. Scott, 2012) shares similarities with the DNA of

Alien

(Dir. R. Scott, 1979),

Prometheus

explores its own mythology and ideas whichcan be interpreted through symbols that debatably reveal concealed messagesdepending on their analysis and interpretation. Through this essay I will be drawingon the comparison of the symbolisms within